January 7, 2018 Synaxis of John the Holy Glorious Prophet, Baptist, & Forerunner Afterfeast of the Theophany of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ Cedd, Bishop of Scotland Fursey, Abbot of Lagny ENTRANCE HYMNS Resurrectional Apolytikion - Angelike Dhynamis ( Angelic Powers ) Angelic Powers were in Your Sepulchre and those who guarded You became as men long dead. And standing there was Mary by Your Tomb seeking Your pure and sacred Body, O You despoiled Hades yet tempted not by him were Y ou. You did meet the Virgin O Life Bestower, O You Who rose from the dead, Glory to You O Lord. Apolytikion for the Feast - En Iordhani ( As You were baptized ) As You were baptized in the Jordan, O Lord, then the worship of the Trinity became manifest, for the voice of the Father bore witness to You, naming You the Beloved Son; and the Spirit, in the form of a dove, confirmed the certainty of the word. O Christ God, who appeared and illumined the world, glory to You. Apolytikion for St. John the Baptist Mnimi dhikeou ( The memory of the just ) The memory of the just is observed with hymns of praise; for you suffices the testimony of the Lord, O Forerunner. You have proved to be truly more ven'rable than the Prophets, since you were granted to baptize in the river the One whom they proclaimed. Therefore, when for the truth you had contested, rejoicing, to those in Hades you preached the Gospel, that God was manifested in the flesh, and takes away the sin of the world, and grants to us the great mercy. Apolytikion of St. Sophia/Ss. Faith, Hope & Agape Greek Oς ελαία κατά καρπος ανεβλάστησας, έν ταίς ανλαίς του Κυρίου, Σοφία μάρτυς σεμνή, καί προσήγαγες Χριστώ καρπόν η δύτατον, τούς τής νηδύος σου βλαστούς, δί α γώνων εύαγων, Αγάπην τε καί `Ελπίδα σύν τη θεόφρονι Πίστει, μεθων δυσώπει υπέρ πάντων ήμων. English Phonetics for Greek Os elea kata karpos anevlastisas, en tes avles tu Kyriou Sofia martys semni, ke prosigages Christo karpon idytaton, tus tis nidyos su vlastus, di agonon evagon, Agapin te ke Elpida, syn ti theofroni Pisti; meth on dysopi yper pandon imon. English As an olive tree laden with fruit you sprouted forth, in the courtyards of the Lord, Sophia martyr dignified, and you brought to Christ a fruit most sweet, Namely your womb s own sprouts, brought up by instructive deeds: your daughters Love and Hope, along with God-minded Faith; together intercede with God for us all. Seasonal Kontakion Epefanis simeron ( You appeared today to us ) You appeared today to us * on earth, O Master, * and Your light was signed on us * who cry aloud to You and say * with understanding, O Christ our God: You came and shone forth, O Light unapproachable.
EPISTLE READING The reading is from Acts of the Apostles 19:1-8 The righteous shall rejoice in the Lord. Verse: Oh God, hear my cry. In those days, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the upper country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. And he said to them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" And they said, "No, we have never even heard that there is a Holy Spirit." And he said, "Into what then were you baptized?" They said, "Into John's baptism." And Paul said, "John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus." On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them; and they spoke with tongues and prophesied. There were about twelve of them in all. And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, arguing and pleading about the kingdom of God. Ἀνάγνωσις ἐπιστολῆς Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων 19:1-8 τὸ ἀνάγνωσμα Εὐφρανθήσεται δίκαιος ἐν Κυρίῳ. Στίχ. Εἰσάκουσον, ὁ Θεός, τῆς φωνῆς μου. Ἐν ταῖς ἡμεραῖς ἐκείναις, ἐγένετο δέ, ἐν τῷ τὸν Ἀπολλὼ εἶναι ἐν Κορίνθῳ, Παῦλον διελθόντα τὰ ἀνωτερικὰ μέρη ἐλθεῖν εἰς Ἔφεσον καὶ εὑρών τινας μαθητὰς εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς, Εἰ πνεῦμα ἅγιον ἐλάβετε πιστεύσαντες; Οἱ δὲ εἶπονn πρὸς αὐτόν, Ἀλλʼ οὐδὲn εἰ πνεῦμα ἅγιόν ἐστιν, ἠκούσαμεν. Εἶπέν τε πρὸς αὐτούς, Εἰς τί οὖν ἐβαπτίσθητε; Οἱ δὲ εἶπον, Εἰς τὸ Ἰωάννου βάπτισμα. Εἶπεν δὲ Παῦλος, Ἰωάννης μὲν ἐβάπτισεν βάπτισμα μετανοίας, τῷ λαῷ λέγων εἰς τὸν ἐρχόμενον μετʼ αὐτὸν ἵνα πιστεύσωσιν, τοῦτʼ ἔστιν, εἰς τὸν Χριστὸν Ἰησοῦν. Ἀκούσαντες δὲ ἐβαπτίσθησαν εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ. Καὶ ἐπιθέντος αὐτοῖς τοῦ Παύλου τὰς χεῖρας, ἦλθεν τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον ἐπʼ αὐτούς, ἐλάλουν τε γλώσσαις καὶ προεφήτευον. Ἦσαν δὲ οἱ πάντες ἄνδρες ὡσεὶ δεκαδύο. Εἰσελθὼν δὲ εἰς τὴν συναγωγὴν ἐπαρρησιάζετο, ἐπὶ μῆνας τρεῖς διαλεγόμενος καὶ πείθων τὰ περὶ τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ θεοῦ.
GOSPEL READING The Gospel According to John 1:29-34 At that time, John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, 'After me comes a man who ranks before me, for he was before me.' I myself did not know him; but for this I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel." And John bore witness, "I saw the Spirit descend as a dove from heaven, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him; but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God." ΕVΑΓΓÉΛΙΟΝ Ἐκ τοῦ Ἰωάννην 1:29-34 Εὐαγγελίου τὸ Ἀνάγνωσμα Τῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ, βλέπει ὁ Ιωάννης τὸν Ιησοῦν ἐρχόμενον πρὸς αὐτὸν καὶ λέγει ἴδε ὁ ἀμνὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ ὁ αἴρων τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τοῦ κόσμου. οὗτός ἐστι περὶ οὗ ἐγὼ εἶπον ὀπίσω μου ἔρχεται ἀνὴρ ὃς ἔμπροσθέν μου γέγονεν, ὅτι πρῶτός μου ἦν. κἀγὼ οὐκ ᾔδειν αὐτόν, ἀλλ ἵνα φανερωθῇ τῷ Ισραήλ, διὰ τοῦτο ἦλθον ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ ὕδατι βαπτίζων. καὶ ἐμαρτύρησεν Ιωάννης λέγων ὅτι τεθέαμαι τὸ Πνεῦμα καταβαῖνον ὡς περιστερὰν ἐξ οὐρανοῦ, καὶ ἔμεινεν ἐπ αὐτόν. κἀγὼ οὐκ ᾔδειν αὐτόν, ἀλλ ὁ πέμψας με βαπτίζειν ἐν ὕδατι, ἐκεῖνός μοι εἶπεν ἐφ ὃν ἂν ἴδῃς τὸ Πνεῦμα καταβαῖνον καὶ μένον ἐπ αὐτόν, οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ βαπτίζων ἐν Πνεύματι Αγίῳ. κἀγὼ ἑώρακα καὶ μεμαρτύρηκα ὅτι οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ.
2018 Ecclesiastical Calendars: In an effort to save the Parish resources, 2018 Church calendars are available for pickup on the table outside of the Parish office on a first come, first serve basis. We respectfully request that each stewarding family take only 1 calendar per household. Thank you! To Parents of Young Children: In case you are not aware, our church has a Cry/Bride Room in the Narthex. For those parents whose young children might understandably get fussy during a service, please feel free to take your youngster into that room for a short while. (There is a closed circuit TV showing the service in the room as well as a bathroom/changing station). The intention is NOT to relegate you to another room; rather, this will enable you to attend to your child in a quiet environment before bringing him/her back into the church. New Iconography: As you can see by the new iconography on the walls of our church, the beautification of our church is complete. There are many new opportunities to sponsor an icon. If you are interested in sponsoring any of these, please see either Dr. Peter Patukas or Fr. Peter Thornberg for more details. Register Tapes: Don t forget to save your Shop-Rite register tapes. We can only use receipts from any of the ten Brown s stores located in: Bensalem PA, East Norriton, PA, Fairless Hills PA, Cheltenham, PA and in Philadelphia, PA, on Island Ave., Oregon Ave., 52 nd & Parkside, Haverford Ave., and Ridge Ave. in the Roxborough section. They also have one store in Brooklawn, NJ. The drop off box is located in the lobby of the Cultural Center. Please submit receipts timely, only tapes from within 4 months of the transaction date are accepted. REDNER S Register Tapes: We are now collecting Redner s Market register tapes. Remember to use your Pump Perks card when making purchases. The drop off box is located in the lobby of the Cultural Center. Bulletin Announcements: Any church organization requesting that their announcement or flyer be placed in the bulletin must submit their material by 12 noon Wednesday for the upcoming Sunday s bulletin. Please e- mail information to office@saintsophiachurch.org Thank you. Elaine Piligian Pastoral Visits - A Request to All Parishioners: If you desire a pastoral visit in case of a hospitalization, or for someone who is homebound, in a nursing facility, or in prison, please have an immediate family member notify the Parish office at 610-650-8960 so that a visit can be arranged. In Case of Emergency: If you are having an extreme medical emergency ONLY and are in need of an Orthodox priest, please call the Parish office at 610-650-8960.
January 7, 2018 Synaxis of John the Holy Glorious Prophet, Baptist, & Forerunner Afterfeast of the Theophany of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ Cedd, Bishop of Scotland Fursey, Abbot of Lagny St. Basil s Academy Fundraising Breakfast: Each year, the local chapters of the National Philoptochos Society hold an event in January to raise funds for the operating expenses of St. Basil's Academy. Please join the Ladies' Philoptochos Society TODAY, for breakfast in the "New Year! St. Nicholas Shrine Vigil Candle: Thank you to Matt, Joann and Nicholas Bannon for sponsoring today s vigil candle for St. Nicholas Shrine (Xronia Polla, Joann!) Anyone wishing to sponsor a vigil candle should sign up at the Pangari. (Each vigil candle lasts one week). Each week a new vigil candle will be placed next to the icon of St. Nicholas until the construction of St. Nicholas Shrine has been completed. The asking donation is $10. Senior Citizen Ministry: St. Sophia s Senior Parea is open to all senior citizens of the community. The next meeting of the Senior Parea will be on Thursday, January 11 th. Stewardship: Thank you to everyone who supported our 2017 Stewardship Program. If you have not yet finished paying your 2017 pledge, please do so TODAY. In addition, when paying by check, it is imperative that you indicate Stewardship 2017 or Stewardship 2018 in the memo line so that your account is properly credited. Also, if you make cash donations, please be sure to include your name either on the outside of the envelope or on a slip of paper attached to the cash. Should you have any questions, please see Tom Cox, our stewardship chairperson. The 2018 campaign will be starting shortly, so it is imperative that we are able to finalize our stewardship roles for this year. Thank you! OUR EMAIL ADDRESSES HAVE CHANGED: Emails to the parish office should now be sent to office@saintsophiachurch.org. If you need to contact Fr. Peter directly, his email address is now frpeter@saintsophiachurch.org.